GlobeMed at Cornell University partners with AMMID to promote the health and well-being of the native Maya-Mam communities in Guatemala.

GlobeMed at Cornell University + The Association Maya-Mam to Promote Research and Development

Key FactComitancillo is one of the poorest municipalities in San Marcos, Guatemala and with 95% of children under 5 living in poverty.

“GlobeMed has given us the opportunity to become active advocates for social change and to inspire others to do the same. We have joined others who, half a world away, also believe in the power of human relationships and urgency for a different world.”
–Sanjana Patel ’13 and Rachel Leopold ’13, Cornell University

About the PartnershipAs of 2014, GlobeMed at Cornell University is partnered with AMMID, The Association Maya-Mam to Promote Research and Development. AMMID seeks to promote the social, cultural, political, economic and environmental development of the communities, autonomously and sustainably, based on the identity of Maya-Mam, generating structural alternatives and forging local capacities to ensure a decent standard of living for families in Comitancillo. In Comitancillo, the native Maya-Mam communities are struggling with poverty, malnutrition, gender inequality, and a loss of cultural identity. AMMID is working to address these problems by providing alternative solutions that will create a self-sustaining community. They are specifically looking for women and children to benefit from equality and health education.

Project
GlobeMed at Cornell University aims to support three projects with AMMID: The first is to provide ecological water filters to help prevent severe gastrointestinal issues that local children suffer from as a result of contaminated water. The second is to provide families in the area with functioning stoves and improve sanitary cooking conditions. The third is to support family gardens to combat the malnutrition that 78% of children in the area suffer from.

This year, GlobeMed at Cornell + AMMID will continue the water filter project that began in the spring of 2014 (85 filters have already been installed in 4 communities- El Jicaro, Taltimiche, La Reforma y Vista Hermosa) to include a total of 9 communities. The goal is to fund 180 more Guatemalan-made Ecofiltro water filters during the 2014-2015 academic year (8,250 USD including transportation, installation and maintenance). Should GlobeMed at Cornell raise greater than 8,250 USD in the 2014-2015 academic year, all excess funds will be allocated for purchasing, transporting, installing and maintaining the corresponding number of filters beyond 180.

ImpactGlobeMed at Cornell is working with AMMID to create a sustainable future for clean water in Maya-Mam communities around Comitancillo. This year, the project will provide clean water for 180 families in the region. As the partnership establishes trust within the community, the yearly projects will emphasize sustainability, focusing on barriers to clean water and other global health issues including infrastructure and politics so that both AMMID and GlobeMed at Cornell are able to tackle the issue from the source.

Get InvolvedRead GlobeMed at Cornell’s annual report and donate to their cause. Interested in joining the chapter? Contact [email protected].